Dicky hardly heard the tribute. The two men were leaving. That was the important thing.... He was alone. An intermittent geyser was at work within him. Every few minutes a surge of hot hope boiled up in his breast. It threatened to deluge him. Out of all the year’s work was netted at this time one bit of working knowledge, as Nagar might have called it, that he must not be deluded by this hope! He tried to cork it up; failing in that he stood as still as he could in the midst of the surges. Gradually, he got the thing in hand, but it was bitter work, this refusing to take the first real breath of life he had known for years.
He found himself in twilight. The day had slipped off, while he struggled alone. His forehead was clammy with the effort going on. To go back into that dreary hopelessness, and not be able to think out the reason why! The force that he had to work with now came from the painful mistake he had made in working for reward before; from the shock of that realization in the red room, that underneath everything, he had counted on his virtue being crowned with Pidge somehow coming across.
Now the fight changed. Persistently in the depths of him grew an awareness that he had not done the full task called of him merely in offering Ames money. This point became so ugly and evident—that he had to laugh. More and more, as moments sped on, it faced him squarely. He had no sentimentalism to tide him over; his emotions stayed ice cold.
“But it’s like a fool Sunday-school story!” he muttered.
Then again the words broke from him: “But living God, suppose she doesn’t want the bundle back! Suppose she’s been trying to lose it, and here I am running after her, saying, ‘You’ve dropped something, Madame——’”
But he couldn’t budge.
Full dark was in the room when he rung Ames at the Charente:
“I’ve been thinking over this thing, Mr. Ames, and I’m asking a favor——”
“Yes,” came coldly across the town. Ames believed he was trying to wriggle out of his promise to pay half.
“I’ve come to the conclusion that this thing is up to me—the whole business, and I’ll thank you very much for Mr. Melton’s present address.”